February 1952 Nor'easter
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The February 1952 nor'easter was a significant
winter storm A winter storm (also known as snow storm) is an event in which wind coincides with varieties of precipitation that only occur at freezing temperatures, such as snow, mixed snow and rain, or freezing rain. In temperate continental and subarct ...
that impacted the
New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...
region of the United States. The storm ranked as Category 1, or "notable", on the Northeast Snowfall Impact Scale.Kocin and Uccellini, p. 659 Its rapid intensification resulted in heavy snowfall between February 17 and 18, accumulating to . High winds also affected central and northern New England. The nor'easter is estimated to have caused 42 fatalities. In
Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...
, over 1,000 travelers became stranded on roadways.Kocin and Uccellini, p. 660 Two ships cracked in two offshore New England during the storm.


Development

The development of this
extratropical cyclone Extratropical cyclones, sometimes called mid-latitude cyclones or wave cyclones, are low-pressure areas which, along with the anticyclones of high-pressure areas, drive the weather over much of the Earth. Extratropical cyclones are capable of p ...
was associated with a pronounced weakening of the usual zonal, or west-to-east, flow which dominates the Mid-Latitudes during the winter, with the
jet stream Jet streams are fast flowing, narrow thermal wind, air currents in the Earth's Atmosphere of Earth, atmosphere. The main jet streams are located near the altitude of the tropopause and are westerly winds, flowing west to east around the gl ...
dipping from the latitude of Boston to the latitude of Charleston, South Carolina. The initial
low-pressure area In meteorology, a low-pressure area (LPA), low area or low is a region where the atmospheric pressure is lower than that of surrounding locations. It is the opposite of a high-pressure area. Low-pressure areas are commonly associated with incle ...
originated in the Gulf of Mexico, with a downstream redevelopment offshore Cape Hatteras on February 16. The cyclone deepened rapidly, 25 millibars in 24 hours between February 17 and February 18, while moving just offshore Long Island and southern New England, and dropped heavy precipitation across the central and northern
Mid-Atlantic states The Mid-Atlantic is a region of the United States located in the overlap between the nation's Northeastern and Southeastern states. Traditional definitions include seven U.S. states: New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virg ...
. The snowfall associated with the storm across eastern New York and southern
New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...
produced the heaviest snows of the winter.


Impact

There was significant disruption to shipping due to this storm. On February 18, 1952, while en route from
New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...
to
Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
, the
T2 tanker The T2 tanker, or T2, was a class of oil tanker constructed and produced in large numbers in the United States during World War II. Only the T3 tankers were larger "navy oilers" of the period. Some 533 T2s were built between 1940 and the end of 1 ...
SS Pendleton' broke in two in a
nor'easter A nor'easter (also northeaster; see below) is a large-scale extratropical cyclone in the western North Atlantic Ocean. The name derives from the direction of the winds that blow from the northeast. Typically, such storms originate as a low ...
south of
Cape Cod Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer months. The ...
,
Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
. A
United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and Admiralty law, law enforcement military branch, service branch of the armed forces of the United States. It is one of the country's eight Uniformed services ...
Consolidated PBY Catalina The Consolidated Model 28, more commonly known as the PBY Catalina (U.S. Navy designation), is a flying boat and amphibious aircraft designed by Consolidated Aircraft in the 1930s and 1940s. In U.S. Army service, it was designated as the OA- ...
aircraft was diverted from searching for another T2 tanker to search for ''Pendleton'', and located both sections. At this point, the Coast Guard realized that they were dealing with two ships that had broken in two. The ''
Coast Guard Motor Lifeboat CG 36500 Coast Guard Motor Lifeboat ''CG-36500'' is a historic, 36-foot lifeboat that is berthed at Rock Harbor in Orleans, Massachusetts. Built in 1946, it is notable for its involvement in the 1952 SS ''Pendleton'' rescue, one of the most daring such ...
'' was dispatched from
Chatham, Massachusetts Chatham () is a New England town, town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States. Chatham is located at the southeastern tip of Cape Cod and has historically been a fishing community. First settled by th ...
. She had four crew on board as the rest of her crew had made themselves scarce on hearing that the ''CG-36500'' was to be sent out to ''Pendletons'' aid. Nine of ''Pendletons'' 41 crew were lost, eight were on the bow section and the ship's cook from the stern section, who had selflessly assisted the rest of the crew off the vessel before him. He was lost when, as the ship started to slide off a sand bar (that she landed on) by the strong gale-force winds, he jumped from the Jacob's ladder, fell into the ocean, and was struck by the lifeboat as it was hit by a wave, killing him instantly. With the survivors on board, a row developed over how they should be dealt with.
Bernard C. Webber Bernard Challen Webber (May 9, 1928 – January 24, 2009) was a United States Coast Guardsman, United States coast guardsman."Bernard C. Webber, USCG, 1928-2009", Coast Guard Heroes, U.S. Coast Guard Historian's Office He was a petty officer ...
, of the ''CG-36500'' decided not to transfer them to and headed for the beach. The survivors were safely landed at Chatham. The rescue of the survivors of the shipwrecked Pendleton is considered one of the most daring rescues of the United States Coast Guard. All four crew of ''CG-36500'' were awarded the Coast Guard's
Gold Lifesaving Medal The Gold Lifesaving Medal and Silver Lifesaving Medal are U.S. decorations issued by the United States Coast Guard. The awards were established by Act of Congress, 20 June 1874; later authorized by . These decorations are two of the oldest me ...
. At the time of her loss, ''Pendleton'' was insured for $1,690,000. The stern ultimately grounded off
Monomoy Island Monomoy Island is an spit of sand extending southwest from Chatham, Massachusetts, Chatham, Cape Cod off the Massachusetts mainland. Because of shifting sands and water levels, it is often connected to the mainland, and at other times is sepa ...
, south of Chatham, and her forepart grounded on Pollock Rip Shoal, at coordinates , The bow section was sold in 1953 to North American Smelting Co. for recycling at
Bordentown, New Jersey Bordentown is a City (New Jersey), city in Burlington County, New Jersey, Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's population was 3,993, an increase of 69 (+1.8%) from the 2010 United ...
. However, it was stranded on June 4, 1953 in the
Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and is the longest free-flowing (undammed) river in the Eastern United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock, New York, the river flows for a ...
and dismantled there c.1978 by the
United States Army Corps of Engineers The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is the military engineering branch of the United States Army. A direct reporting unit (DRU), it has three primary mission areas: Engineer Regiment, military construction, and civil wo ...
.


In film

The movie
The Finest Hours (2016 film) ''The Finest Hours'' is a 2016 American Disaster film, disaster thriller film directed by Craig Gillespie and produced by Walt Disney Pictures. The screenplay, written by Eric Johnson, Scott Silver, and Paul Tamasy, is based on ''The Finest Hours ...
was based on a shipping mishap that occurred during this cyclone.


See also

*
Climate of the United States The climate of the United States varies due to changes in latitude, and a range of geographic features, including mountains and deserts. Generally, on the mainland, the climate of the U.S. becomes warmer the farther south one travels, and d ...
* List of NESIS storms


References

* {{United States winter storms Nor'easters 1952 meteorology 1952 natural disasters in the United States February 1952 in the United States 1952 in Maine